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For years, Master Chief has been the "face" of Microsoft's Xbox consoles, but his days as the unofficial mascot may be numbered. Like Mario and Sonic before him, the stalwart Spartan epitomized the original Xbox, as Halo: Combat Evolved gave the fledgling system a "must-have" game in its early days. But while there is no denying that the Chief ruled the last generation, there's a new kid in town: Gears of War's Marcus Fenix. The gravel-voiced COG soldier burst onto the gaming scene in 2006 as a counterpunch to Bungie's helmeted hero, with Microsoft alternating between a Gears and Halo release every year. While Halo 3 sold quite well last year, there are many who believe that Gears of War 2 will top the charts and make Marcus a household name.

When Gears of War 2 was first announced by Lead Designer Cliff Bleszinski, he said that the highly anticipated sequel would be "bigger, better, and more badass." While Microsoft chose not to adopt that motto as the game's official slogan, it's an incredibly apt description of the game. It may feel and look like more of the same at first, but it quickly becomes apparent that there have been a number of major improvements, some of which probably should have been in the first game. From the story to the gameplay to the multiplayer offerings, Gears of War 2 is superior to its predecessor in nearly every way.

The game's story kicks off some time after the events of the first, with humanity still under attack by the terrifying Locust. We won't get into the specifics of the plot here, but suffice it to say that this is a much more thematically engaging game than Gears of War. You'll come to care more about the characters in Marcus' life, mainly because the dialogue is better (though still dripping with testosterone-fueled machismo) and there are enough quiet moments to actually get to know them a bit. It's still very much an action game, but there are some nice plot touches here and there to give you a reason to care about what happens next.

A high-budget action game is only as good as its sequences and set-pieces, and Gears of War 2 has more memorable moments than most. This is partially thanks to the absolutely stunning environments that you'll visit on your travels, some of which are almost literally jaw-dropping. We could remember dozens of specific moments even weeks after playing it, something that can't be said for many games. Quite a few people complained that the first Gears didn't feature enough variety in its environments, but we have a feeling no one will be grumbling this time out. There's still a bit of "destroyed beauty" here and there, but it almost feels like the folks at Epic strove to create increasingly more impressive and elaborate environments as a response to the criticism.

The gameplay has also seen a number of changes, although the core mechanics remain largely untouched. You'll still need to use cover intelligently if you want to survive to fight another day, especially on the tougher difficulty settings. Speaking of difficulty, hardcore gamers and fans of the original Gears should probably play the game on Hardcore, as it feels like the Normal difficulty is a bit too easy. It feels a lot like the last game (especially when your AI-controlled squadmates get in the way of you taking cover), but there are a number of gameplay tweaks that have improved the experience, including some new weapons and combat maneuvers.